Two weeks ago I had the opportunity to talk to the Columbus Chapter of SMPS about personal branding. The group was really interested in how digital (primarily web and social) affected their personal brands and the way they positioned their businesses.

There have been lots of great articles written on the subject, and Dan Schawbel continually produces great content on the subject. Brandweek had a great article on Authentic Personal Branding and years ago (1997) Fast Company’s article "The Brand Called You" really started the conversation.

So yeah, we get it. Personal branding is more important than ever because so many facets of our lives are being indexed in search engines. Often people focus on the negative aspects, but the reality is that there are huge opportunities to build a positive reputation online. Go ahead…go ego Google yourself and see what you find. (I’ll wait….)

So – what’d you find? Is it representative of how you would describe your personal brand (does your perception match Google’s reality)? Is there anything there at all? Its critical for those search results to position you in a favorable light, but its just as valuable to your employer for your brand to be strong and for you to be known as an expert.

So, where do you start?

1. Identify your passion (marketing, finance, politics, digital, etc.)
2. Identify other thought leaders in your niche - read, comment and share their work (attributing it appropriately of course)
3. Take note of channels where others talk about your subject (there are millions of channels to build your brand, be sure to align your efforts in places where your audience seeks information – and don’t forget your Google profile.)
4. Create assets to support content you’ll create - pictures, backgrounds, etc.
5. Create profiles on the appropriate tools (don’t forget a Google Profile)
6. Regularly create content in your niche that is web friendly, keyword rich and interesting to others
7. Share personal information, but respect a hierarchy of content where topical information and the sharing of others information on the subject dominates the content.
8. Commit time to shape your brand daily – contribute, comment, consumer content, share it, etc.
9. Don’t spam people with messages to share your information, earn your endorsements and grow your reach organically.
10. Remember sometimes the content you find second nature is new to someone researching the topic, share your tips, things you find interesting and other resources that have helped you along the way.